melanzana
aubergine
noun meh-lan-DZAH-nah Rare
Origin: From Arabic al-bāḏinjān via Medieval Latin.
Also means
eggplant
Usage Note
Melanzana is the Italian term for aubergine/eggplant. The plural le melanzane is regular and appears in the classic dish melanzane alla parmigiana. Learners sometimes misspell it melanzane in the singular—the singular is melanzana. The Arabic origin is shared with the Spanish berenjena and French aubergine.
Examples
"La parmigiana di melanzane è un piatto tipico."
Natural Translation
Aubergine parmigiana is a typical dish.
Literal Translation
The parmigiana of aubergine is a dish typical.
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